Troubleshooting

My EVE client isn't detected

Nicotine identifies clients by their process (exefile.exe, CCP's executable), not just the window title. This avoids false matches like browser tabs or Discord channels named "EVE - something". On Linux it works for Wine, Proton, and Steam installs (the process keeps the exefile.exe name); on Windows it reads the process image path.

See exactly what Nicotine detects:

nicotine list     # one line per client:  id <tab> title
nicotine active   # the currently-focused EVE client (if any)

If nicotine list is empty, the client either isn't fully logged in yet or isn't the real game process.

Mouse buttons don't work (Linux)

  1. Make sure they're enabled: enable_mouse_buttons = true.

  2. Join the input group and re-login:

    sudo usermod -a -G input $USER
groups | grep input   # verify after logging back in

  3. Check device permissions: ls -l /dev/input/event*.

  4. Find the right button codes or device with sudo evtest. If autodetect grabs the wrong mouse, set mouse_device_name or mouse_device_path.

Mouse buttons on Windows

These are off by default. Enable them in the config panel (or set enable_mouse_buttons = true). Note that the native hook intercepts the side buttons system-wide while Nicotine runs.

Keyboard hotkeys don't work (Linux)

  1. Enable them: enable_keyboard_buttons = true (off by default on Linux).

  2. Join the input group (as above).

  3. Some keyboards expose several event devices and only one carries key presses. Find the right one, then set keyboard_device_path:

    cat /proc/bus/input/devices | grep -B 5 "kbd" | grep -E "Name|Handlers"
sudo evtest /dev/input/eventX   # replace X with the right number

Wayland and compositors

Supported compositors are KDE Plasma (via wmctrl and XWayland), Sway (via swaymsg), and Hyprland (via hyprctl). Make sure that tool is installed. GNOME is not supported, because its window-management APIs are too restrictive. Preview windows on Wayland render through XWayland (XComposite and XRender).

Logs (Linux)

The backgrounded daemon writes its output to:

  • /tmp/nicotine.out
  • /tmp/nicotine.err

Check these if nicotine start seems to do nothing.

Reset and clean up

nicotine stop          # kills all processes; removes the socket, index, and lock files
nicotine init-config   # write a fresh default config.toml

If the panel or previews get into a weird state, run nicotine stop and then nicotine start for the quickest reset.

Still stuck?

Ask in the Nicotine Discord or open an issue on GitHub.